Owning dividend stocks can be a great way to generate cash flow as well as beat the market long-term. And if you own the right dividend stocks you could generate a growing stream of cash flow year after year with no effort at all.
Not all dividend stocks are cheap or even durable in today's disruptive markets, but 8point3 Energy Partners (CAFD), AT&T (T 1.10%), and Gaming and Leisure Properties (GLPI 1.06%) have businesses that should generate dividends for decades to come and are currently very cheap.
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8point3 Energy Partners
There aren't a lot of companies who can boast a dividend yield of 7.5% and virtually guarantee that the dividend will be paid for two decades. 8point3 Energy Partners is one of those companies and it's a stock investors shouldn't overlook.
The weighted average life of the power purchase agreements on 8point3 Energy Partners' 946 MW of projects is 19.4 years and there's a decade or more of life in the projects after the initial contracts run out. Most of those contracts are with highly rated off-takers like major regulated utilities and municipalities.
Solar energy is one of the most predictable energy sources in the world, making the cash flows from 8point3 Energy Partners' projects predictable as well. The dividend yield of 7.5% is high given the predictability of the underlying cash flows and that's why this is an embarrassingly cheap dividend stock.
AT&T
Telecommunications stocks haven't shown much upside on the market over the last decade, but that doesn't mean companies like AT&T are broken. As one of the two high-end wireless providers (along with Verizon Wireless), AT&T generates billions in net income and free cash flow every year from the customers who subscribe to its services. But the reason to be bullish on the stock and its dividend is because of what lies ahead for the company.
T Net Income (TTM) data by YCharts.
5G networks are beginning to roll out across the country and AT&T has the balance sheet to build one of the nation's best networks. And 5G will make 4G LTE networks look like child's play long-term. The speed of 5G is up to 40 times faster than 4G LTE networks, enabling new technologies like autonomous vehicles, virtual reality, and connected cities. In the U.S. alone, billions of new devices could be connected to wireless networks in the next decade.
AT&T's 5.4% dividend yield isn't the highest investors will find on the market, but it's backed by a company with a wide moat in wireless technology, an industry that will grow for the foreseeable future.
Gaming and Leisure Properties
The casino industry in the U.S. has turned to REITs to own its real estate and Gaming and Leisure Properties is one of the industry leaders. The company owns Penn National (PENN 2.48%) and Pinnacle Entertainment's real estate, generating most of its revenue from fixed rents and a small portion of adjustable rent based on a resort's performance.
Unlike many REITs, Gaming and Leisure Properties isn't reliant on hotel room rates or tenant occupancy to meet its cash flow targets. Most of the operational burden falls on the gaming companies, making Gaming and Leisure's dividend very steady.
The current dividend yield for Gaming and Leisure Properties' stock is 6.9% and that has the potential to grow if the company can buy more casino real estate and if the underlying properties grow revenue over time. Given the consistency of casinos in the U.S., this is a cheap dividend stock today.
